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Author Notes:Fruit Betties typically consist of fruit tossed in bread crumbs. I use small chunks of cinnamon toast instead. In this pear and quince version I’ve added a hidden treasure on the bottom: raisins soaked in booze, then doused in brown butter. The topping is also drizzled with brown butter. If you don’t have quince, or the time to make quince sauce (and let's face it: quince are such a pain to prep), use a good unsweetened applesauce instead. And if you don’t care for the rustic bits of brown buttered toast on top, chop the toast pieces up more finely to make bread crumbs. I’ve included alternate instructions below. This also makes a superb breakfast the next day, gently warmed and topped with a bit of cream. I do hope you enjoy it. ;o)
—AntoniaJames

Gently warm the spirits or cider and add the raisins. Separate the raisins as you add them to the liquid, so they will all plump up nicely. Set aside for at least ½ hour.

Toast the bread lightly on both sides, preferably under your broiler. It’s faster, plus you’ll be turning the broiler on and using a baking sheet anyway for the next step.

Cut the toasted bread slices into ½ inch squares. I do this by stacking the bread, then cutting it vertically into half-inch strips, then rotating the baking sheet and doing the same thing at 90 degrees.

Spread the bits out on the cookie sheet and toast under the broiler for another 20-30 seconds, to further crisp up all the toast bits. Watch carefully however, lest they burn!! You should have about three cups of toast bits and crumbs.

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Arrange the racks in your oven so that the casserole dish will be sitting in the middle of it.

Combine the sugar, ginger and spices in a small bowl.

Using a spoon, remove the raisins from the soaking liquid and place them on the bottom of a 1 ½ quart oven-proof dish (preferably one that has a cover).

Put the quince sauce in a large bowl. Add the leftover soaking liquid and stir well.

Quarter, core, and peel the pears, then cut each quarter into 2 or 3 slices, in that order. (If using thin-skinned Bartletts, don't bother to peel them.) Drop the pear slices into the quince or applesauce; gently toss to combine.

Make the brown butter by heating the butter in a heavy saucepan on the stove, over medium heat. Cook it briskly for a while, stirring occasionally. The foam on the top will eventually disappear, as the water in the butter evaporates. The solids will drop into the melted fat and continue to cook. Watch carefully as you stir. The minute the solids begin to appear a nutty brown color, remove the saucepan from the heat. Continue to stir, off the heat, for another 10 seconds or so.

Put one cup of toast bits over the raisins in the casserole, then sprinkle it with 2 teaspoons of the sugar and spice mixture. Drizzle over it about half of the brown butter.

Spoon half of the pear and quince mixture on next, then sprinkle 2 teaspoons of the sugar and spice mixture. Then sprinkle on a second layer of toast bits (about one cup).

Spoon the remaining pear and quince mixture on, and gently smooth it out.
Cover and bake for 30 minutes. (If your dish does not have a lid, aluminum foil tightly covering it will do just fine.) Toss the remaining toast bits with the remaining brown butter.

After 30 minutes, remove the cover and drizzle the cream all over the Betty. Cover with the buttered toast bits, and then sprinkle over the remaining sugar mixture, and the chopped nuts, if using them.

Bake uncovered for 15 - 20 minutes.

Serve with a smile. A touch of crème fraiche with a few drops of rum or bourbon in it is also nice with this, as is vanilla ice cream.

I do hope you enjoy this. ;o)

N.B. If you prefer not to cover the Brown Betty with toast pieces, cut the last cup of toast bits very finely (in a food processor or by hand) to make crumbs, and toss them with the sugar mixture and remaining brown butter before spreading on the top. Then bake for another 10 to 15 minutes. You won't get quite the same toast flavor experience this way, but it will taste pretty good anyway.

The Quince Sauce -- N.B. This can be doubled or tripled.

2 pounds of quince

Quarter the quinces, then cut each quarter into halves, or thirds if the quinces are large.

Cover with water in a large pot and bring to a boil.

Turn down to a simmer and cook for about an hour. Check occasionally and add more water, if necessary, to keep the fruit covered. Your house will smell more gorgeous than you ever could have imagined.

Strain the cooked quince through a colander or chinois which you’ve lined with a piece of damp cheesecloth. Reserve the quince juice for another use. (It’s full of pectin, by the way.)

Put the cooked quince through a food mill. I use an ancient Foley mill that has only medium-sized holes, i.e., it’s not adjustable. It works well for this. You could also press it through a chinois, without the cheesecloth. Make your sauce finer or chunkier, to taste.

This does sound amazing. I know that the extra juice can be used with a good red wine, some onions and carrots, boiled down to a glaze and spooned over a filet mignon that will make you close your eyes and have an out-of-body experience. I did not think anyone knew what to do with a real quince.

You should post that as a recipe (the sauce you describe)!! Quince are really difficult to work with, but the fragrance alone and that gorgeous color (like a sunset over Verona, and no, I'm not making that up) make up for it. Thanks for the kind words. ;o)

I'm just now starting to catch up on some of the wonderful recipes posted over the last week! I'm having a hard time these days keeping up with all of them. This looks WONDERFUL. I love brown betties and haven't worked with quince for awhile b/c I find the skin difficult too. But you've motivated me to pick some up and make this!!

I find the skin to be almost impossible, which cooking until soft, then running it through the food mill method works. Also, the cooking time of a quince is about six times what it takes to cook a pear or an apple, so making the sauce is the best way to get the flavor into the dessert. I hope you try this!! ;o)

This sounds absolutely perfect. I don't think I've ever seen quince sauce before, but can find quince paste in the better cheese shops around here. Have you ever worked with the paste to create a sauce? This one definitely goes onto my to-do list. - S

Thank you, Oui, Chef! Quince paste is made from quince sauce . . . it's just cooked down quite a bit, but also has a lot of sugar added to it. It's gelled a lot, too, and often has some spices in it. You might be able to get it to work. I'd warm it very gently and see what you get, then thin it out to the right consistency. I'd save a piece of the paste though, to put on a slice of Manchego. The two were made for each other. ;o)

Sally, I've never seen frozen quince, but would be most interested! I had no idea anyone froze it. Where do you get it? (I must confess that I almost never buy anything frozen, so there are probably all kinds of wonderful things in the freezer cases of grocery stores that I've never seen or heard about.) Do tell! ;o)